Commentary

Hustlers in uniform

FOR SIX YEARS I was a crime reporter covering everything from the notorious Natty Morgan to million-dollar fraud cases, and during that time I witnessed many gruesome, illegal and downright evil things. Also during that time, I came to know quite a number of policemen, a few of whom became my friends, most were acquaintances.

In terms of integrity, I could almost swear for most of them. They were hardworking men and women who believed that they were protecting the innocent. There were some, though, in my estimation, the minority, who were corrupt as hell. These guys would prostitute their own mothers if it meant they could earn a few extra dollars doing so.

These days, I am not sure who makes up the minority anymore. Almost every cop that stops you on the street is looking to see what you can do for him. It is almost like that is what they were hired to do - hustlers in uniform. Now, I am not saying that that is the way it is. It's just the way it seems.

And that is what I have a problem with.

Many of the cops whom I knew back when I was on the street are retired or close to being retired now. They are leaving or have left the force and most of the honesty and integrity have left with them. Or so it seems.

Illegal activity

There are policemen and women who are going to be reading this and thinking that I am 'dissing' them, but really I am not. If you are a policeman or woman and you know you are not involved in any illegal activity, then you will also know that I am not talking about you.

Who I am talking about are those who will want to harass you and shake you down for minor offences. I am also talking about those who are driving around in multi-million dollar vehicles and have no other legal means of income save for the $40-plus thousand the Government pays them each month.

I am also talking about those who see these cops who live in mansions that rival the Ritz Carlton Hotel and have lifestyles similar to that of the Sultan of Brunei, but turn a blind eye. I am also talking about those cops who provide armed security services for Colombian drug lords and their local henchmen, not to mention those selling firearm licences to criminals.

I have a problem with this because I still believe that a cop must be a cop and a crook, a crook. There can be no mixing of the two ­ no grey areas. If a policeman believes that he needs to live high off the hog he should leave the force and go pursue his dream, especially if his pursuits involve breaking the law. Leave the crime-fighting to the people who want to.

The people of this country, like any other country in the world, deserve to have a police force that can and wants to protect them from the evil forces that are there to do us harm. You can't have a police force that when you make a report to a policeman you are actually making a report to the very criminal you need protection from.

No. It can't be that way. It is not right and it is certainly not fair to those who live within the confines of the law and pay their taxes, asking in return only that they can sleep peacefully at nights while praying that some drug-crazed loon is not going to kick their doors in and steal their lives.